“Would you staycation in Doncaster?”
This question was posed to Key Stage 1 students at Plover school as the guiding question for their expedition.
As part of their journey answering this, our long-time partners, the Frenchgate shopping centre, delivered a gigantic, blank elephant sculpture to the school with the mission to bring it to life, by showcasing what students had discovered during their expedition and to celebrate what our community has to offer.
Throughout the summer term, the students explored the sights and attractions of Doncaster as they embarked on fieldwork to nine different locations throughout the area, including Lakeside and Keepmoat stadium.
It was here that they gathered inspiration for their amazing product that now has a permanent home at the Frenchgate shopping centre. Experiencing the fun activities and interesting places of the community, led the children to produce beautiful work in the forms of artwork, postcards and photography.
Afterwards, the students set about transforming their elephant into a piece of artwork that showcased their answer to the guiding question and displayed the highlights of Doncaster to the rest of the community.
They began by painting the elephant yellow to represent the school colours. Then came the decoupage where pupils added a collage of their artwork, writing and even included a QR code that leads visitors straight to a fantastic tourist information video!
The Plover Crew share their feedback:
‘The children were really excited when our elephant arrived, they enjoyed planning the colour scheme and layout of the elephant so that it would represent Plover School. Our children had already carefully studied what Doncaster has to offer through field studies to many local attractions which enabled them to answer our guiding question ‘Would You Staycation in Doncaster. It was great to see the children taking part collaboratively to spray paint and decorate the elephant, especially knowing that it would be visible in our local Town Centre.’
– Karen Coward, Phase/Expedition Lead
‘It was an honour to welcome the elephant into our school. The learning expedition in KS1 ‘Would you staycation in Doncaster?’ made learning even more real to our children by giving them the opportunity to showcase their beautiful work. Not only did the elephant leave Plover with a new identity – yellow and containing a collage of work but also with a name – ‘Donnyphant’. The children and staff are all proud that they have contributed to our wonderful town of Doncaster by sharing what it has to offer as she proudly sits on display in front of ‘The Elephant and Castle’ restaurant in The Frenchgate Centre.’
– Jayne Ogle, Head of School
‘I felt really proud when I saw the elephant in Doncaster as I know it had some of my work on it. I enjoyed taking part in this expedition. As well as decorating the elephant, we made a video with our work and photographs which you can see if you scan the elephant’s ear.’
– Brooke, Year 2 Student
So why not, during your staycation, take a trip to Frenchgate, scan the code and enjoy the delights of this most colourful expedition.
To find out more visit ploverschool.co.uk